Better performing vehicles of all sizes and load carrying capabilities, are still needed for efficient amphibious operations, where effective speeds are desired over both water and land, and where the land travel is otherwise hindered over potential traveling routes because they are soft and/or irregular in height and/or slope. Over such terrain, air cushion vehicles, per se, are not possible to operate at all times and wheeled vehicles, per se, are also not possible to operate at all times for such intended efficient amphibious use. Although some vehicles previously presented at first appear to have successfully combined the benefits of air cushion vehicles and wheeled vehicles, there still remains a need for a better combination of these land and sea operational benefits in a more efficiently operated amphibious vehicle.
For example, previously, Arnold M. Hall described and illustrated in his U.S. Pat. No. 3,398,713, a tractive air cushion vehicle. During non airborne travel over land, his fore and aft large inflatable rollers are positioned to support the vehicle for overland travel, when the air cushion lift is not operating. Then during airborne travel over water and land, when the air cushion is operating, these same fore and aft large inflatable rollers are generally deflated and/or retracted, and they do not operate to create vehicle propulsion forces. During airborne travel the outer surfaces of these inflatable rollers guide the air coming, under superatmospheric pressure, from an air chamber, located above in the vehicle, which is exhausting the air through levitation jet channels at the forward and rear of the vehicle. Each levitation jet channel is formed between the respective roller surfaces and a portion of the vehicle body. During this airborne travel over water and/or land, the deflated rollers are rotated oppositely to one another, each in the respective direction necessary to direct the air in the levitation jet channel back underneath the vehicle into the air cushion region. When so rotating, they necessarily help to create and maintain a vortex of compressed air around the bottom of each roller surface, in turn creating and supplying the air cushion under the vehicle, when it is then traveling in its airborne mode. Once the inflatable rollers contact the water or land, or stop rotating oppositely to one another, they fail to supply and to maintain the air cushion.
Also for example, previously John H. Mattson and Clyde W. Ottinger, described and illustrated in their U.S. Pat. No. 3,805,912, a wheeled air cushion vehicle, which is primarily designed for on and over land travel generally referred to as off-road use. Travel on or over water is not undertaken. During off-road use, the combined weight of the vehicle and its load is adjustably distributed between an amount supported by the selective operation of one or more air cushion plenums, and the amounts supported by each of the plurality of wheels equipped with low pressure tires.
Other examples taken from several patents which were reviewed are: Messrs. Joyce and Simpson in their U.S. Pat. No. 3,786,893, illustrate and describe their air cushion vehicle having two selectively operable surface traction wheels, located inside the air cushion volume, spaced side by side, and powered to create propulsive forces during both land and water travel; Mr. Bertin in his U.S. Pat. No. 3,586,118 illustrates and describes his over land ground-effect machine having improved guiding and propelling wheels which variably contact the ground upon the adjustments of their supporting jacks, whereby the overall weight of the machine and its load is adjustable shared between the multiple air cushions and the multiple wheels; Mr. Bertin in another of his patents, U.S. Pat. No. 3,261,418, describes and illustrates his vehicle for over land travel which utilizes air cushions which effectively provide lift against flexible tracks which in turn are driven by rollers filled with a compressed gas; Messrs Nicholas, Hunts and Tattersall, in their U.S. Pat. No. 3,372,664, illustrate and describe their air cushion wheels which travels over water, as a drive belt moves a series of cleats adapted to thrust against the water below the air cushion; Raymond S. Russel in his U.S. Pat. No. 3,683,840 describes and illustrates a water borne amphibious vehicle having a fuselage supported by three flotation drive wheels of spherical shape having drive fins which thrust against the water and land; Hermann W. Gehlen in his U.S. Pat. No. 3,698,350, illustrates and describes an amphibious vehicle having a buoyant body and a marine propellor drive system for water travel, and a multiple land wheel drive system coupled with an air cushion system for travel over muddy and sludgy ground; and John V. Veldhuizen in his U.S. Pat. No. 3,710,887, describes and illustrates his air cushion vehicle with supplemental support wheels, each of which have blower wheel accessories, to compress air for the creation of an air cushion lift, while they also directly support some of the overall load of the air cushion vehicle and its load.
These previously patents are representative of earlier disclosures by others of vehicles, used on land and/or water which often utilized air cushion lift accessories, and had wheels which partially or fully supported the vehicle on land. Although many embodiments have been previously shown, the embodiments hereinafter illustrated and described are distinguishable in the many ways they create better performing amphibious vehicles.